Tufted pile fabric and method of making same



May 18, 1965 w. L. WHITE TUFTED PILE FABRIC AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Filed May 8, 1963 BY 1.1mm; GZJ s 63M!) INVENTOR. Willa/12 United States Patent Ofifice 3,184,367 TUFTED PILE FABRIC AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME William L. White, Wynnewood, Pa., assignor to Collins 8: Aikman Corporation, New York, N.Y., a corporation of Delaware Filed May 8, 1963, Ser. No. 278,879 4 Claims. (Cl. 161-63) This invention relates to a tufted pile fabric and the method of making same and more particularly to a tufted pile fabric in which the pile loops are opened up to form a high pile in a predetermined design.

It has long been desirable in the art relating to textile fabrics to produce a tufted fabric having interesting designs in the pile face thereof. Many of the methods which have heretofore been developed are difficult to put in practice and are expensive to perform.

In the particular case of tufted pile fabrics it has been difficult to provide ornamental designs in the pile face due to the nature of the tufting operation.

It is an object of this invention to provide a tufted pile fabric and the method of making same wherein an ornamental design is produced in the pile face.

It is also an object of this invention to provide a novel tufted pile fabric and method of making same wherein an ornamental design may be produced in the pile face in a relatively simple and inexpensive manner.

It is further an object of this invention to provide a continuous method of producing a predetermined design in the pile face of a tufted pile fabric The objects of the invention are carried out as set forth in the description of a specific embodiment of the invention and the drawings associated therewith in which:

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a tufted pile fabric employed in carrying out the invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary schematic drawing in perspective illustrating the continuous method of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view showing in detail one step of the method in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view showing the pile surface of a tufted pile fabric before the practice I of the invention;

FIG. 5 is a similar view of the fabric of FIG. 4 after the practice of the invention;

In describing the preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawings, specific terminology is being resorted to for the sake of clarity. However, it is not the intention to be limited to the specific terms so selected and it is to be understood that each specific term includes all technical equivalents which which operate in a similar manner to accomplish a similar purpose.

A tufted pile fabric made up of backing material 11 and pile yarns 12 is illustrated in FIG. 1. The fabric 10 is shown in FIG. 2 with the backing material 11 uppermost and the pile surface 12 extending downward. In carrying out the method of the invention the tufted pile fabric 10 is passed over a roller 20 and between the printing roller 21 and pressure roll 22. Back up roll 23 which engages printing roll 21 is immersed in a bath 24 maintained in a container 25. Fabric 10 moves in the direction indicated by the arrows and passes between pressure rolls 26 and 27 and then through drier 28 for the completion of the operation.

In FIG. 3 the fabric 10 which has passed through the drier 28 is acted upon by tigering roll 29. The fabric 10 in its condition prior to the operation of the invention is shown in FIG. 4 and the finished fabric 10a bearing the design imprinted by the printing roll 21 is shown in FIG. 5.

In the process illustrated in FIG. 2 the material applied to face 12 of the tufted fabric 10 by means of the printing roll 21 is a liquid lubricating or softening agent which has the effect of lubricating the fibers of the pile yarns with respect to each other. This liquid 24 shown in container 25 may be any one of a number of commercial softeners or napping agents which have been used for assisting in napping textile fabrics. Included among such materials without in any way limiting them are the following commercial products:

Product: Manufacturer Ceranine HC Sandoz, Inc.,

New York, NY. Aridex WP E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., Inc., Wilmington, Del. Napset Sythron, Inc.,

Ashton, R.I. Crockset W Sythron, Inc.,

Ashton, R1. Crolene LC Crown Chemical Corp.,

Providence, RI. Velvetol LS Quaker Chemical Co.,

Conshohocken, Pa. Diap rm SN Quaker Chemical Co.,

Conshohocken, Pa.

By means of the present invention the softening agent 24 is applied to the pile face 12 of fabric 10 in accordance with a predetermined design. Sufiicient softener should be applied to insure saturation of the pile yarns 12. As shown in FIG. 2 the softening agent may be applied by means of a roll 23 immersed in a bath of softener 24 which carries the liquid to printing roll 21 and thence to the pile yarns 12 of the fabric 10. Following the printing operation the fabric is passed between squeeze rolls 26 and 27 to remove excess liquid and the fabric is then dried in drier 28. At this point the fabric 10 may be stored for later operation or may be continuously acted upon by passing directly to tigering roll 29 as shown in FIG. 3 which acts to open up the pile loops 12. By virtue of the application of the softener 24 in a predetermined pattern the effect of the tigering operation on the pile yarns 12 varies from place to place across the surface of the fabric 10. Wherever the softener 24 has been imprinted and saturated in the pile yarns 12 the tigering operation will pull the fibers of the pile yarns considerably higher out of the backing material than in the case of those pile loops which were not impregnated with softener. The effect of the opening operation of FIG. 3 in accordance with the invention is illustrated in FIG. 5 where a predetermined pattern has been produced in the pile face 12 of the fabric 10a.

It is to be understood that the tigering operation may be performed by a tigering roll, as shown by way of illustration, or any apparatus which functions to open up the pile yarns and pull the fibers thereof out of the backing material.

While the method of the invention is particularly valuable as applied to tufted fabrics, since it has otherwise been found very difficult to obtain variable depth surface effects in cut pile tufted fabrics, the method can be applied to knitted or Woven fabrics. The method of the invention is precisely the same in each case. The difference is in the backing material and the manner in which the pile yarns engage the backing material.

While in accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes I have illustrated and described the best form of embodiment of my invention now known to me it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that changes may be made in the precise form of the method described without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, as set forth in the appended claims, and that in some cases certain features of my invention may Patented May 18, 1965 be used to advantage without a corresponding useof other features. a a

What is claimed is:

' 1. A method of producing anorn-amental pattern in the face of a loop pile fabric comprising saturating the pile yarns of the pile fabric vwith a lubricating ma-j teriali whereby the yarns are saturated across the face of the 'fabric in accordance with a predetermined 'pattern, tigering the loops of both saturated and unsaturated portions of the pile yarns in the face of the fabric simultaneously to open and draw the fibers of'the pile yarns thereof out of the backing material, the tigering of'the loops drawing the fibers of the saturated portions of the pile yarns considerably higher out of the backing material than the fibers of the unsaturated portions by virtue of the lubricating material. a

2. The fabric made according to the method of claim 1. 3. A method of producing an ornamental pattern in the face of a loop pile fabric comprising continuously first passing a loop pile fabric over a printing roll'bearing a predetermined ornamental design saturating the pile yarns a r 4 of the pile fabric in: accordance with said predetermined design on the printingroll, then drying the saturated pile yarns and finally ti-gering the loops of both satur-atedand unsaturated portions of the pile yarns in the face of the I fabric simultaneously to open and draw the, fibersof the pile yarns thereof out of the backing materiaL-the-tigering of the loops drawing the fibers of the saturated portions of the pile yarns considerably'higher out of: the backing material than the fibers of the unsaturated portions by virtue of the lubricating material in accordance with said predetermined design. I v r I 4. The fabric made according to claim 3.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,695,441 11/54 Runton j 28--76 'MERVIN STEIN, Primary Examiner.

DONALD W. PARKER, Examiner. 

1. A METHOD OF PRODUCING AN ORNAMENTAL PATTERN IN THE FACE OF A LOOP PILE FABRIC COMPRISING SATURATING THE PILE YARNS OF THE PILE FABRIC WITH A LUBRICATING MATERIAL WHEREBY THE YARNS ARE SARTURATED ACROSS THE FACE OF THE FABRIC IN ACCORDANCE WITH A PREDETERMINED PATTERN, TIGERING THE LOOPS OF BOTH SATURATED AND UNSATURATED PORTIONS OF THE PILE YARNS IN THE FACE OF THE FABRIC SIMULTANEOUSLY TO OPEN AND DRAW THE FIBERS OF THE PILE YARNS THEREOF OUT OF THE BACKING MATERIAL, THE TIGERING OF THE LOOPS DRAWING THE FIBERS OF THE SATURATED PORTIONS OF THE PILE YARNS CONSIDERABLY HIGHER OUT OF THE BACKING MATERIAL THAN THE FIBERS OF THE UNSATURATED PORTIONS BY VIRTUE OF THE LUBRICATING MATERIAL.
 2. THE FABRIC MADE ACCORDING THE THE METHOD OF CLAIM
 1. 